


Handle With Care

by Riviin



Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF
Genre: M/M, Multi, thank you for reading, this is kind of a personal thing but idk it has been really relaxing to write so far
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-20
Updated: 2014-03-31
Packaged: 2017-12-24 02:38:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 13,323
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/934262
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Riviin/pseuds/Riviin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Gavin Free did not like to think of his situation as an unstable household. He didn't like to tell people that his father beat him, or his mother was an alcoholic. He didn't like to admit that he only had two friends, one of them being his own brother. He did not like to admit that, when his brother ran away from home and his mother drunk herself into a stupor, his father beat him nearly to death. After waking up in the hospital, connected to tubes and beeping machines, with his father weeping on his bedside, he wanted to ignore the entire situation. </p><p>Gavin is abused, Geoff is overprotective, and Michael is head-over-heels.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. With Arms Outstretched

“Being raised in an unstable household makes you understand that the world doesn’t exist to accommodate you, which… is something a lot of people struggle to understand well into their adulthood. It makes you realize how quickly a situation can shift, how danger really is everywhere. But crises, when they occur, do not catch you off guard; you have never believed you lived under a shelter of some essential benevolence. And an unstable childhood makes you appreciate calmness and not crave excitement.” – Curtis Sittenfeld

Gavin Free did not like to think of his situation as an unstable household. He didn't like to tell people that his father beat him, or his mother was an alcoholic. He didn't like to admit that he only had two friends, one of them being his own brother. He ignored the questions aimed toward bruises or cuts, lumps spread across his head or arms or legs, and eventually the subject was ignored. 

He did not like to admit that, when his brother ran away from home and his mother drunk herself into a stupor, his father beat him nearly to death. After waking up in the hospital, connected to tubes and beeping machines, with his father weeping on his bedside, he wanted to ignore the entire situation. 

Of course, given the liabilities the doctors and nurses could assume had they not, he was reported to Child Services. They came to his house and assessed the situation, and two days later he was being taken from his home. His parents were made to attend a facility for eighteen months, while Gavin and his brother would be sent to temporary families offering their homes. They wouldn't tell Gavin where his brother would be sent - he hoped it was better than Austin, Texas. 

\---

Granted, it seemed to be one of the better places to live in Texas. It had nice weather, and was very well kept. The buildings were tall and up-to-date, but there was also a slew of trees and plants covering most every block in at least one place. He wasn't advised for the flight seeing as he was seventeen, just given a ticket and a general bio on the family he would be staying with; very nice, happily married couple with a single young daughter. Boring as all hell. 

When the plane had emptied and he found himself, baggage in both hands, staring at a crowd of people holding signs, he was more than surprised to see a very young, very punky couple claiming him with a simple white sheet of paper. It looked like it had been decorated by a child. 

He walked to them slowly, pausing and flinching back when the male went for a handshake. 

"Hey, dude, there's no need to worry. You're safe here." 

"I was fine back home." 

He shrugged, "You'll be even better here. I'm Geoff. This is my wife, Griffon, and my daughter, Millie." 

Gavin studied them carefully; he was bearing two full tattoo sleeves and double piercings in his left ear, his wife had short blonde hair in pigtails and bore a nose ring, and the daughter had soft hair filled with colors. Part of him was afraid of the three, but he sucked up his fear and shook the hands extended toward him. 

Geoff took his bags while Millie assumed the position of talking to him. 

She touched his arm lightly before pointing up to his face, still riddled with bruises and cuts, "Are you okay?" 

"Yeah, top." 

"What?" 

"I'm - yeah, I'm okay." 

She nodded once, "My daddy told me what happened to you. Don't worry, we'll keep you safe now." 

His heart swelled slightly with that, and he grinned down at her before ruffling her hair. 

"Thanks, Millie." 

Though he couldn't see it, Geoff was smiling. 

\---

The car ride had been uneventful and Gavin was soon standing in the doorway to his new bedroom. It was big - bigger than he had expected - and already equipped with a lush bed, flat screen and laptop. 

"The TV was already in here. The laptop is a gift from us, they let us know you wouldn't be allowed to bring your computer." 

"I- You really didn't have to.." 

"Nah, don't worry about it. We wanted to." 

Gavin wasn't worried about the family, his new family, anymore. 

"Geoff! Gavin! C'mon, your food is gonna get cold!" Griffon shouted from the living room, Geoff grinned.

"We better go, don't wanna piss off the Mrs." 

Gavin left his luggage unpacked near his bed and followed Geoff to the kitchen. The food was shockingly thorough; brisket, homemade rolls, corn on the cob and other vegetables. Gavin ate two plates before he was pleased, and he looked up to notice the entire table staring at him. 

"I think we've finally found your food soul-mate, hon." Griffon smiled. 

Geoff looked incredulously at him while the others continued their meal, "Amazing." 

-

Once all the plates were clean and off of the table, Gavin was distracted by a very strong smell of chocolate. He had time to take one loud, dramatic sniff before Griffon emerged with a plate of steaming brownies. Gavin ate three before Geoff suggested they retire to the living room for family time - Gavin hoped it entailed television. 

"All right, I hate to get all father-y right away, but we gotta talk about some stuff." 

Gavin grimaced slightly, trying his best to not speak out of turn. 

"Okay, for starters, school." Geoff said, pulling a few sheets of paper off of the side table. "It's a really nice school, I swear. It's called Bowie and it's probably one of the less douchey schools around here despite having the same name as, well, y'know." 

Gavin smiled a bit, "All right." 

"You'll be starting on Monday, I know it's really soon but it's kind of mandatory for you to start as soon as possible. My friends' kids go there, and they're not total idiots. Here's your schedule, it's pretty basic but you can get it changed on Monday.

"There's no uniform or anything, so you're pretty golden on that. I imagine you're still pretty used to the prospect of school, you were in one like a week ago, but I'm not sure how different it is over there." 

"What do you mean?" 

"Just, in general I guess? I don't know how schools are over there, and I don't know how you treat teachers or other kids but it's a pretty lax system here." 

Geoff waited for Gavin to nod, and continued when he realized he wasn't going to.

"Okay, anyway. I'll drive you to school, it's on my way to work, but you have two options for a way home: wait outside for about forty minutes until Grif can pick you up, or walk the two blocks to my office and hang out there for a while until I can take you home." 

"Uh, I think I'll go with the first option. Offices aren't high on my list of fun places to be." 

Griffon laughed, coming out of the kitchen with a tray of tea. "You may want to try out one day at his office before you decide on that, sweetie." 

Gavin was confused, and his face wore it well, "Where do you work?" 

"Roosterteeth," Geoff smiled when Gavin's ears nearly perked, "I take it you know about us?" 

Gavin swallowed quickly and stared wide eyed at Geoff for several seconds before speaking, "So, let me get this straight. You're Geoff Ramsey? Like, Achievement Hunter Geoff Ramsey?" 

"Geoff Lazer Ramsey." He smiled smugly, "Yes." 

"I don't believe this!" Gavin nearly jumped up onto the couch, moving a little closer to Geoff in excitement before realizing his proximity and pulling back quickly, "You don't just work for Roosterteeth, you helped create the entire company! I can't believe I didn't recognize you! I mean, I had never actually seen you, but you have the exact same voice as him!" 

"That's because I am him, dipshit." 

Gavin gave a goofy smile, jumping lightly in his seat, "I think I'll try my hand at coming to work with you." 

\---

Monday came much quicker than Gavin had anticipated, and though he was fully prepared in terms of supplies, he wasn't sure he was ready for this. He had never transferred schools before. He had gone to the same schools in his small town forever, never switching to a school a town over let alone an entire continent over. 

Geoff drove him by the office before dropping him off, making sure he knew the route to the building and leaving him with a short "See you after school, make lots of friends!"  
He had only been there four days and Geoff had already, very seriously, assumed the role of his father. He was happy for Millie, she got to grow up with him and, though he was completely weird, he was the coolest and nicest guy ever. 

Gavin sighed when he saw his new school, it didn't look too much different from his old one. He spent twenty minutes getting his schedule rearranged to his liking before heading off to his first class.

Pre-calc. 

Nobody really talked to him. He noticed a few recurring faces throughout classes, and several people whispered too loudly about his battered being. When lunch came, he grabbed the brown paper bag (decorated very lovingly by Millie) and sat at an empty table near the edge of the cafeteria. There weren't many people there, and he kind of figured that most students ate in the halls or went somewhere for lunch. 

He had set out a large brisket sandwich, a juice and a bag of chopped celery when someone appeared in front of him. The boy was kind of dark, his hair was pitch black and he wore glasses underneath caterpillar eyebrows. He was wearing a Sailor Moon shirt and he had a tray of school lunch in his hands.

"Hey, mind if I sit?" 

"Not at all."

He slipped into the chair less-than-gracefully and picked at some of the food on his plate. "I'm Ray. Ray Narvaez Jr., you're new here, right?" 

"Yeah, I'm Gavin. Gavin Free." 

"British, huh? That's weird. Why'd you transfer over here?" 

"Got, uh, sent away I guess?" 

Ray nodded a few times, taking a bite of his sandwich. "How is it? The school, I mean." 

"It's all right, not much different. Nobody seems too interested in talking to me." 

Ray paused before setting his food down, "Hey, would it be okay if I invited some of my friends to eat with us?" 

Gavin perked up slightly at the thought, never having eaten with a group, "Yeah, of course!" 

"I'll be right back." He left his tray, which Gavin hoped was a good enough sign that he wasn't just ditching him. It took a minute or two, but he soon returned with several people trailing behind him. They all sat, and the table was soon decently full.

"Okay," Ray started, "This spunky chick is Lindsay Tuggey, she's crazy but she's a total thug so watch out. This nervous looking one is Caleb DeNacour, he's weird and he cheats at video games but we love him anyway. This blonde chick is Barbara Dunkleman, she's gonna make a lot of puns but she's pretty cool other than that. This anime guy is Monty Oum, the small one is Kerry Shawcross and the one who looks like he could probably model is Miles Luna - they come in a set. You already know me, Ray, the handsome one with the great sense of humor, and that idiot over there is Michael Jones. He's gonna yell at you, but don't worry. He's never actually mad, he's just a huge bitch." 

"Shut the fuck up, Ray." 

"I rest my case." 

They bickered back and forth for a little while before everyone eventually jumped into Question Mode. 

"Why did you move here?" Barbara asked, her attention fully on him.

"I got sent away to live with a, um, I guess they're kind of like a foster family? But not with a bunch of kids." 

"So they adopted you?" Kerry chimed in.

"No, not like that. I'm stayin' with them for eighteen months while my parents do this class thing." 

"That's weirdly nonspecific." Caleb. 

Gavin gave a short nod and shrugged. He was fine answering questions about this type of stuff, he had practiced what he would say a million times. It wasn't until he noticed Michael staring at him that he got nervous - it wasn't that it was a rude kind of stare, it was just so rawly understanding. 

"What's school like in the UK?" 

"Pretty similar to here, really." He shrugged, "Just a bunch a gits." 

Everyone laughed. "How old are you?"

"Seventeen." 

"Junior or senior?" 

"Junior." 

Ray perked up, "Oh, cool! We're all juniors except for Miles and Lindsay, they're seniors."

"Really? What happens to the trio when you graduate?"

"I uh, actually was thinking about trying to get a job here." 

"Here? Like, in the school?"

"No, no. In Austin, though. I wanna work for this company called, uh, Roosterteeth." 

"We all want to work at Roosterteeth, Miles. Stop acting so special." Ray joked.

"Oh," Gavin said simply, "That's cool." 

"What class do you have next?" 

"Uh," Gavin took a second to remove his schedule from it's crumpled position in his pocket and check, "Anatomy." 

Ray's smile faded a bit and he snapped his fingers like a cartoon character, "Damn, I was hoping we'd have next period together. Let me see your schedule." 

He only spent a maximum of seven seconds to look over his class list before hitting Michael on the arm, "Hey dude, he's got like almost the exact same schedule as you." 

Michael smiled, "Cool. Maybe you can help me get through anatomy." 

"I'm telling you dude, it would be the easiest thing in the world if you would actually pay attention." 

"It's boring as shit, though."

"I think it's pretty cool. I mean, it's crazy, right? Human bodies and all that." Gavin piped in.

Michael smirked at him through a questioning look, "What the fuck are you talking about?"

"No, no think about it! Like, it's really amazing. What if your legs knew they were legs? But they don't!" 

The entire table had their attention on him then, and Ray laughed, "Dude, even I have no fucking clue what that means."

"Well, it's just. Would they keep working?"

"Yes."

"But what if they just like, realized that they were legs? They would just be like 'nah, not keeping up with this anymore'." 

"You're a fucking idiot." Michael said through a grin.

The attention was brought away from him with a simple topic change, courtesy of Lindsay, about an upcoming assembly. 

Gavin felt as if, for the first time in years, he had found a happy place.


	2. Ripchord

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oh, dear.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's not the best thing I've ever written but this is more of a side story okay, I wanted to put this in the story because I love Chris so much he needed his own side story. I will get back to the main story in chapter 3 okay, yeah, yes.

Walking from the school to Geoff's office had seemed like more of a chore than it had turned out to be. It was bright out, and very hot. Gavin was glad he was wearing a t-shirt and shorts today, as even jeans would have left him sweating. 

The sidewalk was pristine in most places as if it had just been redone. He made a point of stepping on every crack. 

When he reached the outside of the building, he spent what was probably far too long just staring up at it. He remembered hearing on a podcast that the company was growing too fast, that they needed to move buildings. Gavin desperately hoped they didn't. He finally stepped up to the door and, with a deep breath, swung it open. 

The inside air was cool and inviting and he found himself walking in as if it was his regular routine to be here - suppose it was, now. He started walking forward, observing decorations on the wall and the general scenery of the place. 

A sweet but confused voice piped up, "Can I help you?" 

Gavin spun around to come face to face (well, if he was looking down) with a thin, blonde woman. He sputtered slightly in his answer, finally regaining his ability to speak.

"I'm Gavin?" 

"Oh!" Her grin got brighter and she moved to hug him, stopping when he flinched away. "Geoff has told everyone about you. C'mon, I'll take you to the office. I'm Kara, I run the front desk." 

The route to Achievement Hunter was short and easy to remember. As far as he was concerned, he would be able to walk himself there just as easily had she just told him the way - not that he minded the company. She linked arms with him and opened the door to reveal Geoff and another man playing video games. She cleared her throat, getting their attention and presenting Gavin to them by stepping back and showing him at arms length with a smile. 

"Oh, hey Gav." 

Kara huffed at his less-than-spectacular reaction and left, shutting the door behind her. 

Geoff spoke again from his seat, "Jack, this is Gavin. My brand new seventeen year-old British son." 

Jack laughed, standing a bit too quickly for Gavin's liking. He scurried backward a few steps and grabbed the corner of the wall tightly. Jack held up his hands in mock-surrender, smiling lightly through his beard. 

"Nobody is gonna hurt you here." 

Gavin relaxed, "Sorry," He stepped forward from the wall, shaking Jack's offered hand, "Not used to this quite yet." 

"Don't worry about it, man. We're playing Halo, wanna join in next game?" 

"Nah, I'm rubbish at it." 

Gavin sat and watched them play three more games before getting tired of it. Geoff spun in his chair and propped his feet up on Gavin's legs, placing his hands proudly on his gut while giving him a sleepy smile. 

"Wanna be in a video?" 

"What?" 

"We have to record AHWU, wanna be in it?" 

"Uh, sure?" 

Both men grinned at him in a way that would look dark were it not two of the most loving people he had ever met. Despite that, he still found himself shaking as he watched them record their parts a few times. Geoff grabbed him under the armpits and picked him up, placing him in front of the camera. He tried to object, but was only handed a card with his lines written sloppily on it. 

He read straight from the cards, "Hi guys it's Gavin from Achievement Hunter - Geoff, I'm not in Achievement Hunter!" 

"You are now!" 

He looked at the camera with wide eyes before puffing out his cheeks and going again.

"Hi guys, it's Gavin from Achievement Hunter here to let you in on a secret. I am Geoff's shiny, new seventeen year old British son and I am a bag of dumb? Geoffrey!" 

"Just read the cards, dude!" Both him and Jack were trying to hold back laughter. 

He faced the camera once more, "I am the newest Achievement Hunter and I got to Bowie High School here in Austin, so if you're an interested lady or... lad? What? No! No, no no not okay! You prick!" 

Gavin ran at Geoff and jumped, landing a little painfully in his arms instead of knocking him over as he had planned. 

He hit him once in the arm, "Were you serious?" He whispered.

"About the lads? Yeah." 

"No! No. About me.. being a part of this?"

Geoff set him down and put a hand on his shoulder, assuming the ultimate father pose, "Gav, how would you like to work for Roosterteeth?" 

He jumped right back up into his arms, hugging him and smiling into his shirt.

"Dude, what do you weigh like, thirty pounds?" 

He hit him again, softer this time, and without breaking the hug.

\---

A part of him had the realization some time after going home that he was going to be on the Roosterteeth channel, and that was a big deal. He was too oblivious, however, to think about the very likely possibility of people from school seeing him in that video, let alone his friends. 

When he got to school that morning, he got weird stares from several people. He ignored the attention and focused on getting through his classes, just surviving until lunch. 

When that fourth bell rang and he was released, he nearly sprinted down the halls to the cafeteria. He sat in the same seat as yesterday and, ignoring the fact that he was still getting stares, tore into his lunch. Ray and Michael were the first to show up, both holding school lunches. They sat and smiled at Gavin before side-eyeing each other. 

It was Michael's look of utter disbelief mixed with a bit of, what, pride? That made him set down his food and swallow what he had already bitten.

"What?" 

"Are you serious?" Ray questioned, widening his eyes.

"I, uh. Did I do something wrong?" He prepared to move, to get up and run if that was what was needed. Though, looking back on the last 24 hours since he had met the two, he couldn't think of anything he had done. 

Noticing his nerves, Michael swooped in, "No, no. It's okay, Gav." Ray glanced at him again, this time with a different glint in his eyes. "So, uh. Roosterteeth, huh?" 

It clicked in his brain that they had seen the AHWU - of course they had seen it. They had spoken just yesterday of how much they wanted to work there, and he hadn't even said anything. He just showed up and was immediately offered a job there. 

"I'm sorry! I didn't - Geoff didn't tell me until yesterday that I could work there! I would have tried to get you lot jobs there, too." He strung one hand through his hair, pulling lightly, "I'm so scatterbrained, I'm sorry. Sorry." 

"Woah, woah, woah! Gavin! Hey, Gavin!" Michael tried. When he failed to get his attention, he stood and moved over to him; keeping a safe distance but getting close enough that he could grab his hand. "Gavin." He said once, lightly. 

He stopped, staring down at their entwined hands. 

"It's okay." 

Michael squeezed his hand once before letting go, and Ray cleared his throat. 

"Why didn't you just tell us? It would have been easy to slip into conversation." 

"I dunno." 

Ray laughed, shaking his head, "Fucking idiot." 

When everybody else showed up, they ate lunch in normalcy, talking about video games and homework and that video of that one celebrity. Every time somebody brought up Roosterteeth, Gavin got a little more comfortable talking about it.

"How did you manage to get Geoff Ramsey to adopt you?" Miles asked, dumbfounded.

"Just lucky, I guess. He says it's 'cause I was meant to be his son, but I think he's full of it." 

Everyone laughed. Lindsay spoke up, "Do you think we could come see the office sometime? Meet everyone?" 

Gavin shrugged, "I've only been there once myself, but I'll talk to Geoffrey after school today, yeah?" 

They all grinned. 

The bell rang, cutting off any conversation that was left, and they all stood to leave. Ray and Michael walked with Gavin, popping him random questions about his new home life.

When he had told them all that he could, having only been there a couple of days, Ray parted. 

Michael stuck by him all the way to their class and, though the teacher glared at him and tried to make him move, he demanded that he be his new lab partner. 

It was during a lecture that Michael finally brought it up.

"Gav, I'm sorry." 

He gave him a confused look, "'Bout what?" 

"Your parents." 

"What?"

"It used to happen to me, y'know? Not my folks, it was this creepy asshole uncle. He got taken away, and they wanted to put me into foster care or something but I refused." 

Gavin didn't say anything. 

"I guess I should've taken them up on that offer, I could've gotten some famous video game guy as a father." 

He still didn't say a word.

"You're okay here, I promise." 

"Thank you." He whispered, finally finding his voice.

Neither of them spoke for the rest of class.

\---

The walk to the office seemed longer, but not worse in any way. Two buildings down from his destination he found himself stopping, staring down into a dark alley. There was a kid down there, someone around his age with nothing but a half filled backpack and a ragged blanket. He was crying, not audibly but visibly, sobbing into his knees and shaking.

Gavin walked forward, knelt down. He didn't say anything, didn't feel like that would be the best way to go about comforting him until he knew the problem. He went to rub his back, nearly falling backward at the force of the realization when the boy flinched away harshly. 

"Do you need something to eat?" 

The kid looked up, "W-what?" 

"You look hungry, why don't you let me buy you some lunch?"

He didn't fully take his hands from his face for several seconds, didn't even move to get up until he was sure he wasn't being tricked. He finally nodded, only once and very short. 

Gavin helped him up, "What's your name?" They both began walking from the alley, down to a sandwich shop. 

"Chris." 

"I'm Gavin." 

They walked in silence until they got to the restaurant, and when Chris tried to order a small sandwich alone, Gavin stepped in. 

"Could you change that to a large, and make it a meal, please." He ordered his own food, getting three cookies as well before leading the boy to a table near the back. It was less a meal than it was Gavin watching him devour his food, drinking like he hadn't had a sip in days and, when Gavin pushed all three cookies toward him, looking at him like he was his own personal angel. 

"Why are you doing this?" He asked around a mouthful of food. 

Gavin shrugged, "Dunno, you looked like you needed it. Do you have a place to sleep tonight?" 

Chris stopped, chewing fully and looking down slightly, "Yeah." 

"Do you have a place to stay tonight, other than an alley?" 

He didn't answer. 

"Right then," Gavin began, picking up his backpack and grabbing their trays, "Let's go." 

"Are you going to report me to the police?" 

Gavin laughed lightly, placing a hand on Chris' shoulder tentatively, "Don't worry." 

They didn't talk about much on the way to the office, especially avoiding the topic of homelessness. When they got there, Chris stopped, mouth agape slightly and eyes wide. 

"This is Roosterteeth."

"Yeah." 

"What are we doing here?" 

"M' dad works here."

"I - wow." He finally began walking again, catching up to Gavin just in time to follow him in the door. 

"Hey Kara, this is Chris." 

She waved without looking up from paperwork, "Hey doll." 

As soon as the door to their office was open, Geoff was smothering Gavin in a life-threateningly tight hug. He shook him from side to side, ruffling his hair with one hand. 

"I was worried sick about you! Where have you been? You're supposed to come straight here after school." 

"Bollocks. Geoffrey, get offa me, I went to get food with a friend." 

Geoff pulled away, still keeping him at arms length, and looked over to Chris. He was worn down, hair disheveled and clothes in obvious need of washing. He carried a napsack over his shoulder that was dirty but still in good shape, like it had been bought recently or well kept until the past week or so. Geoff gave him a sad look and looked back to Gavin, a knowing glint to his eyes. 

"Is your friend staying over tonight?" 

"I was hoping he could, yeah." They nodded to each other, "Thanks, Geoffers." 

They stayed at the office well into the night, playing video games and generally goofing around. When they got home, Gavin showed Chris to the shower and gave him clean clothes to change into, having Griffon throw his in the wash. They set up an air mattress in his room with three of the softest blankets they could find, and when Chris emerged from the shower there were nearly tears in his eyes. 

When it got to be 2AM and neither could sleep, they both laid in bed talking.

"What happened? With, well, y'know." 

"I, uh, I got kicked out of my house."

"That's rubbish, I'm sorry. Do you still go to school?" 

"No, I'm not sure if I'm even registered anymore." 

"Where did you go?"

"Bowie. It's not far from here." 

"That's where I go! I've only been there a couple of days, but they're a nice lot." He smiled to himself, "Chris, I think you should go to the police." 

"Gavi-"

"Chris, please. I know how you feel, ignoring everything is loads easier than dealing with it, but you've got to trust me on this. If I had refused to talk to the police, I would be living at home with an alcoholic mum and an abusive dad, but instead I'm here! I'm living with the Ramsey family! A nice house, amazing food, idiotically loving people."

"I get it, Gavin." 

"I'll go with you." 

He was silent for a very long time, it was almost expected that there would be no answer. 

"Okay." 

Gavin grinned into the dark.

\---

The next morning, they both woke up to the smell of breakfast. Gavin swore he could hear Chris' stomach rumble. When they got out to the kitchen they found Griffon sipping tea and relaxing against the counter while Geoff cooked. He turned to them and grinned lazily, holding out a pan of several fried meats.

"Hungry, boys?" 

They nodded vigorously, serving themselves - Gavin added extra to Chris' plate when he felt he was skimping. They all sat at the table like a family, and Geoff took an opportunity to speak when Griffon took Millie off to prepare for preschool. 

"So, Chris. Do you need a ride to school?" 

"Uh, I-"

"Geoff." Gavin gave him a stern look. 

"Jesus, Gav, it's like I'm the child in this relationship sometimes." He smiled, "Chris, you can stay here as long as you need. Griffon will be home all day today, and if you need to go anywhere you can just ask her." 

"We need to go to the police station." Gavin threw in nonchalantly. Chris picked at his fingernails nervously.

"Yeah. Yeah, okay, I figured something like that. Runaway?"

Chris kept his stare down, "Kicked out."

"That's rough. You'll be fine, you seem tough." Geoff placed a hand on Chris' shoulder lightly, "Yeah, you'll be okay."


	3. Keep It Together

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guess who is finally settled in at her new house and has inspiration to write again?!? ME. I'll update as often as I can now, so you won't have to suffer more than a week without an update again. Sorry I made you wait so long, I hope it's worth it!

"Do you ever think about clothes?" 

Gavin was staring into space, his mouth slightly agape and his eyes bearing confusion.

Chris laughed, "What?" 

"The invention of clothing. What bloke decided we needed to cover it all up?" 

"Probably some really cold person before they invented heat." Griffon piped up from next to Gavin. Both boys laughed.

"But why still have them? We've got heat now, loads of it. Everything's heated; pools, houses, cars."

"What about when you're walking in the cold?"

Gavin stilled as realization hit, "Right." 

Chris knew that he was just keeping him distracted from the current situation, and though he was too nervous to say so, he was more than thankful for that. Gavin grinned back at him. It was a short ride to the police station and by the time they pulled up, Chris' entire being was shaking in fear. When they got out of the car and Gavin noticed, he smiled sadly and put an arm around his shoulder. 

"You're gonna be all right, y'know." 

Chris stopped shaking so much at that, "I know." 

\---

"Chris Demarais?" The woman behind the counter asked in surprise when Griffon told her the situation. "Your parents reported you a runaway just yesterday."

Chris moved to the front, a confused look on his face, "What? I didn't run away from home!" 

"Well, please take a seat and we'll get to you in just a moment. I'm sure we can work this all out and get you home."

"I don't want to go home!" He shouted, "I'm not going home." His voice was a whisper by the end of the sentence and the woman gave him a sad look.

"It's going to be okay, sweetie." Griffon reassured, pulling him over to the chairs in a nearby corner. Gavin followed and when they sat, they each flanked Chris protectively. A lifetime of abuse can make anyone protective of even the newest of friends. 

In record time, there was a man in a plain black suit walking up to them. "Hello. I'm detective Marks, I deal with social cases. We have quite a bit of talking to do, if you'd just come with me." 

Detective Marks turned on his heel and was about to begin walking when Chris spoke up. 

"Can- Can Gavin come with me?" His voice sent out fleets of nerves in every direction. The detective turned back around and looked down to Gavin, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips. 

"Of course." 

\---

The room was lit well and very comfortable, despite what most films featuring them would suggest. Gavin and Chris were seated next to each other in plush chairs and detective Burns was sitting across from them with a cup of coffee in hand. 

"Help yourself to coffee if you'd like, boys. There are also a few doughnuts left." He motioned to a table off to the side bearing a plate of sugary goodness and a steaming pot of, very obviously fresh, coffee. When neither of them got up, he went on. "Right. So, Chris, we have a record of your parents calling at two seventeen PM yesterday and reporting you running away from home. We sent an officer over to asses the situation and he reported back no note." 

"I didn't run away." He said in confidence, though his voice still shook.

"Of course, the receptionist informed me of that. Could you tell me about what happened?" 

"You said they just reported me gone yesterday?"

"Yes." Chris said something inaudibly in reply, "What was that?" 

"I've been gone for two weeks. They kicked me out two weeks ago, today." 

"Kicked you out?" 

"Yeah. My dad, he's got a drug problem and my mom isn't around much. I'm kind of a disappointment, and I got a C on my last report card." He breathed in once, sharply. "They've been counting on me getting a full ride for college because they never saved any. They think that I'm going to stay in their lives forever if I don't get into college, living off of them and being a disappointment." 

"Chris, no child is ever a disappointment. I want you to know that." 

He looked down to his hands, "Right." 

"We'll have to speak with your parents to sort things out. If what you're telling me is true, you'll be taken from your parents. Often times, the abusers won't admit, so if you want to get out of there you have to continue with this no matter what. I suggest having no contact with them, and I ask that you remember one thing: they can only keep hurting you if you let them." 

Chris was crying, the tears trailing silently down his face. He wiped at them and sniffled, "What's going to happen to me?" 

"Well, you're underage. If you have any relatives who are willing to take you in, we should call them now. If not, you'll most likely end up in foster care." 

"The only family member I've ever talked to other than my parents is my grandmother, Lucy. I called her every day for six years, but they wouldn't let me take my phone with me. She's probably angry at me for not calling." 

"Do you know her phone number?" 

He reached toward the phone on the table and dialed the numbers somberly, staring at the receiver blankly before handing it over to the detective. 

It was a few seconds after he had the phone to his ear that he began talking, "Hello, Lucy Demarais? This is Detective Marks. I'm calling about your grandson, Chris. Yes, he's perfectly fine." He was silent for several moments, "Is that so? Well, he's down at the station on 42nd. If you're willing, we ask that you come pick him up." More silence, this time shorter. "That's great to hear. Thank you." 

He hung up. "She says that your parents called her two weeks ago and told her you ran away and they already informed the police. She's very relieved to hear that you're okay, and she's on her way here now." 

Chris let out a shaky breath, "Okay." 

\---

It was promptly twenty seven minutes later when detective Marks returned to the office with Lucy in tow. She hustled over to Chris and nearly crushed him in a hug.

She held him at arms length, "You should have come to me straight away." 

"I'm sorry, gran." 

"Don't be. All that matters is that you're safe now." She hugged him again. "And you're coming to live with me." 

"Excuse me, um," Gavin spoke and she noticed him for the first time. "Do you live in town?" 

She smiled, "Who's this?" 

"Gran, this is Gavin. He bought me lunch and let me stay at his house last night." 

"Well, wasn't that kind of him." She sat down. "Yes, dear, I do live in town. Why do you ask?" 

"I'd just really like it if Chris could still go to the same high school." 

Her smile got even brighter, "Don't worry, we'll work everything out." 

"I'm sorry, Chris, but would it be all right if we spoke to you and your Grandmother alone?" The detective spoke.

He looked to Gavin, "Thank you." 

Gavin nodded, "See you at school?" 

Chris smiled.

\---

It was lunch by the time Gavin arrived back at school, and his usual group of friends were quick to accumulate around him. 

"Skipping on your second day of school? Absolutely shameful." Michael spoke up, setting down his bag from the store and pulling out two candy bars. "Here, gotcha something." 

"Thanks, Michael." He opened it and took a bite, smiling grossly over to him. 

"Charming." 

"So, Gavin," Miles spoke up, feigning nonchalance. "Did you happen to talk to your famous father about us visiting the office?" 

"Oh!" His eyes popped, "Totally forgot, actually. Here I'll text him." 

"Texting an internet celebrity, hashtag no big deal." Ray said loudly. Gavin smiled up at him. 

_Hey Geoffers, can I bring a couple enthusiasts by the office for a bit today?_

His reply was almost instant. 

_Are they as lame as you are?_

Gavin tapped away. _Top notch humour, "dad"_

_Your friends can stop by around 5, we have some stuff to do today. I'll let Kara know._

_Thanks, you da best_

"Right then, looks like you lot get to see the office." 

____The gasp was almost simultaneous, "Are you serious?" Miles spoke, almost yelling._ _ _ _

____"Not until 5 tonight because they've got something to do, but yeah."_ _ _ _

____"You are the actual best." Lindsay said through an enormous grin._ _ _ _

____"So, hey, who's gonna pick up the kid with no license?" Ray said. Everyone laughed._ _ _ _

____The bell dismissed them from lunch and made them groan at the idea of class. Michael fell in step beside Gavin._ _ _ _

____"That was really cool of you, y'know. I bet it'll be the highlight of their year."_ _ _ _

____Gavin laughed, "See if you all survive Geoff, then we'll see."_ _ _ _

____\---_ _ _ _

____The walk to the office was particularly easy that day. Gavin picked a flower and pulled it apart, feeling as if he were in a cheesy movie about teenage life. When he got inside the front door Geoff was waiting._ _ _ _

____"We have a surprise for you, so cover your eyes and no peeking or I'm telling Griffon not to give you any dessert tonight - she's making chocolate chip cookies."_ _ _ _

____Gavin was confused, but shut his eyes tight regardless at the threat. Geoff grabbed him by the shoulders and pushed him to the office, opening the door and moving somewhere in front of him._ _ _ _

____"Okay, open."_ _ _ _

____The first thing he noticed was that there were more people there; Jack, as usual, was accompanied two others. They all yelled 'surprise' and motioned to the wall where Gavin finally noticed what the actual surprise was - a desk holding a brand new computer, and x-box near the tower on the floor, and a chair to match the others._ _ _ _

____"Geoff, I- Two computers? That's too much. I can't-" He started shaking slightly and his breathing got a bit ragged at the thought of all that money being wasted on someone like him. Someone so unimportant._ _ _ _

____"Gav, hey, Gavin. Gavin, it's okay!" When he noticed that he wasn't calming down, Geoff silently ushered everyone out into the hall. He grabbed Gavin as lightly as he could and guided him to a sitting position on the floor. "Calm down. Breathe. Hey, look at me."_ _ _ _

____Gavin calmed at the sight of Geoff, the definite focus point helping him to slow his breathing and stop his shaking. "It's too much, too much money to spend on me."_ _ _ _

____"What do you mean?"_ _ _ _

____"You're housing me, you bought me a laptop, my room has a giant bed with perfect bedding and a flatscreen TV. That alone is more than I deserve, I can't take another computer and an x-box from you."_ _ _ _

____"It isn't from me, not technically. You work here, you have to have a desk with a computer. It's a company expense."_ _ _ _

____"But-"_ _ _ _

____"No buts, dude. There's nothing to worry about." He smiled at him, "Besides, I can buy you whatever the fuck I want. I'm your dad."_ _ _ _

____Gavin pushed him._ _ _ _

____They both stood and Geoff went to the door, letting back in the few people he had shoved out. Gavin gave them anxious once-overs and tried to hide the embarrassment he felt from having an episode the first time they'd met._ _ _ _

____A tall, well-on man with curly hair and glasses was the first to extend his hand. "Burnie Burns, almighty God of Roosterteeth."_ _ _ _

____Geoff scoffed. The next was a shorter, dark skinned man who also wore glasses. "I'm Gus. I actually run the company while Burnie gets into ridiculous antics."_ _ _ _

____"Hey, I do my part." Burnie said in offense, "We thought we should meet Geoff's 'shiny new Brit' and welcome you to the company."_ _ _ _

____"Do you have any experience with video production?" Gus asked._ _ _ _

____"I've taken classes on it. Back in England I did slow motion stuff with my best friend, but that's about it."_ _ _ _

____"Huh, that's more than we expected. Welcome to the crew."_ _ _ _

____They spoke a little more and signed some papers, getting Gavin officially signed to the company, before Burnie and Gus left. Geoff and Jack sat, turning on their consoles._ _ _ _

____"So, Gav, got any ideas for a Let's Play?"_ _ _ _


	4. Don't Deconstruct

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> uM

As it would turn out, Gavin is very good at bringing life to videos. They had played Minecraft, at his suggestion, and he had almost immediately scampered off on his own. Upon his return, Jack and Geoff found a very unpleasant surprise.

"What the fuck it that!" Geoff cawed, hitting it with his pickax. "It takes for fucking ever to break."

Gavin was a mess of giggles as he watched the other two try to break away at the obsidian covering their house with iron pickaxes. "It takes four minutes to break obsidian with an iron pickax." 

Geoff groaned, "Fuck that." He shut off his Xbox and stopped recording, as did Jack and Gavin. 

"How did you even get that there?" Jack asked in annoyance.

"Found a cheeky bit of diamond in my mine." 

They wanted to be mad, but his grin was too wide to hate. There were two knocks at the door and Kara peeked her head in, "Gav, your friends are here." She looked back out, "I'm not sure they'll all fit in comfortably. Geoff, you should give them an office tour!" 

Geoff got up and opened the door to eight smiling, over-excited kids. "Holy shit, Gav. You've gone to this school for two fuckin' days." 

Gavin shrugged, though he knew Geoff wasn't looking at him. He stood, making his way to the door and opening it up all the way. 

"Hey, there he is!" Miles said, moving to the front of the group and practically bouncing on his heel, "Gavin!" 

"Gavin!" Michael repeated in a mocking tone. Geoff laughed. 

"Okay, kiddies. Let's go." He held a hand up in the air and began walking down the hallway. Everyone followed, Miles at the head of the group talking emotionally.

Michael fell into step next to Gavin, "Hey, dickie-bitch." 

Gavin looked to him in confusion, "Dickie-bitch?" He laughed, "Hi, Michael." They stopped walking, falling behind the group in mere seconds.

"Guess who did their anatomy homework." He grinned.

"Really? Aw, boi! I'm so proud!" 

Then it happened. 

It's hard to explain why a passerby bumping into his shoulder roughly brought it back. His breathing hitched and his lungs felt as if they were giving out, his voice rose from a whisper to a shout of apology as he crouched lower and lower to the ground, clutching his hair. Michael was on him in a second, keeping distance and a soft edge to his voice but speaking with reassurance.

"You're okay."

"He will not hurt you."

"He's not here."

It was less than a minute later that a group had formed. Michael spun and practically hissed at them to leave, to give him space. 

"Gavin. Please listen to me, everything is okay." He stood slowly with their hands connected, ushering him to a standing position. "I'm going to put my hand on your back, I'm not going to hurt you. We need to go outside." 

It's hard to explain the feeling of it; suffocation, embarrassment, trauma, fear. No single word connected wholly with the feeling of complete and utter despair felt when something like it was brought back on, something you are afraid you'll never escape. When the cooling air of Austin's evening hit his face, he calmed. He felt the touch on his back and gripping his own palm. He felt his heart rate slow and his breathing even out, and he heard Michael.

"Do you want to sit?" 

Gavin only nodded. They sat on a curb in silence for three minutes before it was broken.

"I can't go back."

"What?" 

"I can't go back to England. To my parents. I'm only supposed to be away for eighteen months, but I can't do it." 

"You don't have to." 

"But-"

"No, Gavin. Please listen. I don't know the specifics, but if what just happened is any indication, I will personally not let you go back there."

"You don't-"

"Gavin." He inhaled deeply, "Do you remember a few days ago, when we first met? What I told you in anatomy?" 

He nodded.

"I went back." It was silent for several seconds. "I was young, barely a teenager. One of my teachers reported it, the marks. They thought it was my parents, but I told them it was a schoolyard bully. I didn't give any names, so my parents switched my schools. It was okay for a few months, y'know, like a grace period. I don't know what triggered it again, but- but it was bad. Worse than it had ever been, worse than I thought it could ever be. I was in a coma for three months and when I woke up, he was there. I freaked, told the nurses not to let him near me, shouted at him to get out. It only took four hours for him to be arrested and placed with a restraining order."

"Michael, I-"

"I haven't seen him in almost four years. He wrote me once, apologized. I never wrote back." He turned to face him fully, "Gavin, you can't write back. I won't let you." 

He didn't know when he had started crying, but he felt stupid almost immediately for doing it. He wiped at his eyes with the back of his hand and nodded and, despite his quivering lip, he felt better.

Michael moved forward and closed his arms around him lightly. Gavin hugged back. 

"I won't write back." 

The second after they pulled apart, the door opened and Geoff poked his head out, sighing heavily before coming fully out. 

"Gavin, where the fuck-" He noticed the puffy eyes and still wet quality of his cheeks. He turned immediately to Michael. "What did you do?" 

"Nothing, I-" Michael started, being cut off by the sniffling brit.

"It's okay, Geoff. I'm okay." He stood, making his way to the door only to be caught in a careful but protective grasp. "Michael, I- uh, I'll see you at school." 

Michael nodded once and stood to leave. 

The walk to Geoff's car was silent, painstakingly so. 

"I'm sorry, I have to ask - what was that?" He spoke only after the doors were shut.

"He- His uncle. He was, um, he- my dad. It's-" His voice was like molasses, but he couldn't form the proper sentence.

Geoff put a hand on his shoulder, "I get it. C'mon, we should get you home." 

"Home." He whispered. 

\--

Dinner was quiet but not awkwardly so. Millie did most of the talking as Griffon realized the feeling hovering about the table. After the dishes were cleared and the cookies had been sufficiently depleted, Millie was sent to her room to play.

They were seated at the couch in silence for several minutes before Griffon spoke. 

"Is anyone going to tell me what's going on?" 

Geoff began, "It's-" But was quickly cut off.

"Do I belong here?" 

Griffon quirked an eyebrow, "What do you mean? Of course you do. You're part of the family." 

"But what about when the eighteen months are up. What about when I have to- when I have to go back?"

"You seem nervous, sweetie."

"What if I don't want to go back." He spoke slowly but quietly, almost as if he were afraid of them hearing the words.

"Gav, what are you saying?"

"What if, when the eighteen months are up, I still want to live here. Still want to be your son." 

"I would say that, despite you only having been here a week, we would both want that very much." 

"We've actually talked about it, and we don't think you should ever see your father again." Geoff said calmly, though it had that protective edge. "Gavin, how would you feel about us adopting you for good?"

"I-" The words caught in his throat and his eyes welled up only slightly. He nodded in vigor and, though he would deny it for years to come, Geoff let out a squeal.

\---

The next day, Gavin enjoyed even his maths class. His demeanor was so chipper that nobody even saw the still-fading bruises littering his arms; or at least, he'd like to think so. By lunch, Michael was brimming with curiosity. He caught Gavin at his locker just as everyone else was fleeing to the cafeteria. 

"What the fuck are you so happy about?" 

His grin nearly overtook his face, "Geoff and Griffon are adopting me, for good!" 

The realization took a second to hit, but once it did Michael was the physical embodiment of happiness. 

"Gavin! That's great!" 

"We have a meeting with a lawyer next month." His smiled softened, "Thank you, Michael." 

The hall was empty. Michael didn't know what it was that he saw in Gavin's face that made him do it, but as soon as he connected their lips he was sure he wouldn't regret it.

He was wrong.

"Oh, shit." He said as he pulled away, backing away down the hall. "Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit. Gavin, I-" He couldn't finish his sentence, instead trusting what his brain was telling his limbs to do and booking it in the opposite direction. Out the doors. 

\---

Gavin must have spent ten minutes just standing there staring after him, fingers touching his lips. He finally worked up the mental stability to make his way to the lunch room, finding Ray and everyone else already seated at their table - everyone but Michael.

"Yo, Gav! Where have you been, buddy?"

"I, uh, nowhere. At my locker." 

"Dude, are you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah. 'Course. I'm just a little out of it today, is all." 

Ray shrugged and Gavin sat, opening his lunch but finding that he really wasn't hungry at all. The conversation was mundane at best until Ray brought up a particular topic: Courtney Crawford.

"Her parents said that she can visit next summer."

"That's so far away." Barbara said.

"Nineteen and a half months."

"How do you even know she's a chick?"

He blushed, "Shut up. I just know."

"Oooooh, he got nudes!" 

"Barb!" 

"I think it's really sweet, Ray." Lindsay offered, "That you're so into her."

"What can I say, she's great."

Minutes after the topic had been dropped, Gavin turned to him. "Ray?" 

"Yeah?" 

"Do you have Michael's phone number?"

\--- 

When he got to the office, he was still as spacey as he had been hours earlier. He stared at the new contact in his phone for a bit every so often until Jack left and Geoff finally confronted him.

"Gav, you've been staring at your phone like it's a fucking golden dick." He leaned back in his chair lazily, "What's up?" 

"Do you ever really want to do something but you physically can't bring yourself to?" 

"Yeah, every second of every day. It's called me job." When Gavin kept silent, he sat up straight. "You didn't even laugh at my dumb joke. Seriously, what's going on?" 

"It's Michael."

"Oh, your boyfriend?"

"He's-" He looked to Geoff in confusion that melted into realization and took a deep breath, rubbing at his temples. "He kissed me." 

Geoff was silent, "All the signs point to this being a good thing, yet you seem upset."

"I dunno."

"Well, did you want him to kiss you?" 

"I-" He stopped then, because he hadn't even considered that part of it. Sure, Michael obviously had feelings for him, but how did he feel about Michael? He knew, of course, that it was ridiculous to say he didn't already know. "Bollocks."

He practically ran from the room, phone pressed to his ear.


	5. Small Figures in a Vast Expanse

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> guess who's back (back back) 
> 
> i'm sorry this took so long, i've had work and high school and university and wow

Gavin held the phone tightly despite the furious shaking of his hands. It rang three times and his breath hitched when that voice picked up on the other end.

"Michael?" He started, hearing the small gasp on the other side, "Don't hang up." 

There was a pause, "Okay." 

"Where are you right now?" 

"The school parking lot." 

"O-" He stopped, "Wait, what? Why are you-? Never mind. Can you come to Roosterteeth?" 

"Gavin, I don't-"

"Michael, we really need to talk. Please."

He sighed through the phone, a kind of desperate sound. "Okay."

Gavin waited in the front parking lot for longer than he wanted. He was jittery and nervous, legs bouncing and hands pulling through his hair unconsciously by the time Michael had parked and gotten out. They both walked in a weird mixture of rushed and reluctant, and when they met in the middle there were no words forming in either of their throats.   
Finally, with a rough and worried edge, Gavin spoke. 

"Hi." No reply. "Mich-"

"I'm sorry." 

"Wha-"

"Fuck. I'm so sorry. I know it was stupid and fucking creepy, and we've only known each other for a few days. I just.." He shut his eyes and rubbed the bridge of his nose, "I'm sorry."

"You dunce."

"What?" 

"Did you honestly think that running off and ignoring it would be the best course of action?" He sighed, "It doesn't matter how long we've known each other, dummy. Whether you kissed me the first day we met or years from now it wouldn't make a difference, my reaction would be the same."

Michael glanced away and bit the insides of his cheeks, "I've gotta tell you, Gav. You're really bad at letting people down easy." 

And that was all Gavin could take. He grabbed the collar of Michael's shirt and brought their lips together quickly, holding him there only shortly before stepping back.

"You are very possibly the thickest person I've met." He smiled, grabbing the beanie from Michael's head and putting it on himself. "And I want to kiss your stupid face a lot." 

"Wow," They both spun around to see Geoff standing in the doorway with his arms crossed, "That was really gay." 

"Geoffrey!" 

"Well," Michael started, "It's not like he's wrong."

\-------

Two and a half weeks later found them at the lunch table very inconspicuously holding hands. Ray had given up on most of the jokes when he realized the reward of laughter was trumped by the continuous bruise on his upper arm. Gavin's phone flashed on the table and he unlocked the slider to see a text from Geoff.

_Gavvy wavvy i have a surprise for you waiting at RT. NO SKIPPING OUT ON THIS <3 geoff _

Gavin groaned internally and set the phone down. Michael looked over to him, quirking an eyebrow in question.

"Geoff says he has a 'surprise' waiting at Roosterteeth." 

Michael laughed, "Bad luck, dude." 

Another flash. Gavin picked it up and let a grin stretch across his face as he turned the phone toward Michael - who sighed.

_Oh, and bring your boytoy._

"Hey!" Lindsay said, hitting Michael in the shoulder lightly. She pointed to the cafeteria doors. "Is that Chris?" 

"Holy shit, dude." He turned to speak to Gavin, but found that he wasn't there and was instead walking quickly toward Chris, lunch completely forgotten.

When Gavin approached him there was a moment of silence where they just looked at each other and smiled.

Then, Chris spoke. "Hi." 

Gavin hugged him and swung him side to side, setting him back down and throwing his hands up in the air in quick celebration.

"You're here!" 

"I know!" 

"You were gone for so long, I thought I'd never see you again." 

"Well, here I am!"

Gavin laughed, "I can see that!" He glanced back at the table full of his friends staring at him in confusion. "Wanna come sit with us?" 

"Sure." 

When they sat at the table together, all eyes were on them. Gavin looked to Michael who had a furrow in his brow.

Gavin, in confusion, asked "What?" 

"How the fuck do you and Chris know each other?" 

"Yeah," Lindsay joined in, "He's been missing for a long time. Longer than you've been here."

"He.." Ray glanced between the two and spoke softly, "Ran away from home." 

"Oh." Gavin grinned. "Nah, you've got everything mixed up. He didn't run off, he was-" He glanced at Chris, asking permission, and continued when he got a nod and a smile. "He was kicked out. His parents suck, and he was on the street for a while before I found him and brought him to Geoff." 

"Speaking of Goeff, I wanna formally thank him sometime." 

"Right, we'll have you and your gran over for dinner some time." 

Chris smiled, "Okay," He turned his attention to the rest of the table, "moving on from the sad and depressing, how much did you guys miss me?" 

It was silent for a few seconds.

"Eh." Michael said, a grin spread across his face that had the whole table laughing and smiling as relief filled the air. 

\--  
After seventh block, Michael found Gavin by his locker and sneaked up on him, snaking his arms around his waist and resting his head on his shoulder. 

"Time to go face our supposed doom." 

They walked together, hand in hand, out to Michael's car and drove the short distance to the building. Gavin was shaking in anticipation, having learned in the short while he'd lived with him that surprises from Geoff were always irrefutably good. 

Michael grabbed his hand, "It's like you took 15 fucking adderall, holy shit." 

Gavin smiled at him. 

They entered the building with Gavin bouncing on his heels and Michael giving Kara a look that practically screamed 'I've had to put up with this since lunch, please help.' She smiled back at him and waved as they entered the office to find - nothing new? Geoff was hunched forward in his chair, gripping a controller and repeating "no, no, no, no, no" as Jack laughed. Geoff sighed in defeat after a few seconds and set his controller on his desk with a dull thud before spinning in his chair to acknowledge the two people he had called there in the first place. 

"You're late." 

"Fuck you, we're right on time." 

Geoff grinned sloppily. He loved Michael - partially because he made Gavin so happy, but probably mostly because he was goddamn hilarious to interact with. Sometimes he thought that a new branch of the company could be created, and successful, of just him and Michael talking shit together. 

"Well boys, today is a big day for the internet. We have 7 releases of games people have been waiting months for, a brand new console, 3 conventions that we aren't attending so they're worth dick-all, and" He gave enthusiastic jazz hands, "A Let's Play that, for the first time in Achievement Hunter history, will not feature Jack or yours truly." 

"Ah, shit." Michael said, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips even through his disdain. He both loved and hated playing video games with Gavin, and he wasn't 100% on his feelings toward potentially millions of people seeing him scream at his boyfriend. Don't take it the wrong way, he had no qualms on the entire gaming world knowing he was gay - even more that he was gay for Geoff Ramsay's idiotic, adopted, stupidly adorable British son. He just maybe worried about Gavin's opinion on it. 

But, when Gavin squeezed his hand and gave him a large grin and a "this will be so much fun, boy", his worry vanished. 

Soon enough he found himself sitting comfortably close to his boyfriend; sharing a screen, a keyboard and a pop filter. The game was loading, and they both stared at the screen with confused wonder. 

_Surgeon Simulator._

\-----

The next day, Michael picked Gavin up for school. Gavin insisted, despite Michael's best efforts to convince him that, no, the driver controls the stereo, they wound up listening to a pop song on next to full blast. 

Ray approached the car when they drove up, bagel in one hand and what looked like coffee but was probably actually hot chocolate because it was Ray. They walked to their locker hall together and Michael split off, leaving Ray and Gavin to walk to their shared first block. 

"So," Ray began, "Surgeon Simulator, huh?" 

Gavin ruffled slightly and grinned down at him, "Bloody brilliant, weren't we?"

Ray laughed, "Oh yeah," Sarcasm dripping from his words, "Expect your email of acceptance into medical school within a week." 

 

"Medical school? Nah, shooting straight for hospital."   
They let their laughter die out and, after a few more seconds, Ray nudged his arm. 

"I'm really glad you met him, Gav. You seem - Well, a lot happier." 

He scoffed, "It's not just him, you sausage. You lot, all of you, are the best thing that's ever happened to me. I am happier." 

\---

"Gavin?" 

He was pacing the small, white hallway and wrung his hands together nervously.

"Gavin." 

He continued pacing.

"Gavin!" Michael gripped his arm lightly and held him at arms length. "Calm down. Please. I'm right here." 

"I don't know if I can do this, Michael. I haven't seen them in, god, how long has it even been? They're going to be so angry, and hurt. They're going to- they're going to see me. Look at me and I'm going to have to look at them, look them straight in the face while I crush their lives into little stupid bits and oh my god I hate him, Michael, I hate him so much I don't want to see him." 

The court hearing was less than 10 minutes away and Gavin's parents - his REAL parents, not the scumbags who he happened to share DNA with - had gone into the court room to prepare. Michael convinced him to sit on the bench and let him rub small circles over him shoulder.

"Will you-" Gavin started, but cut himself off with a shake of his head.

After realizing he wasn't planning on finishing, Michael pursued, "Will I what?" 

"Would, um, would you sing to me?" 

He smiled, "What do you want me to sing?" 

"I don't know. Something nice." 

And he did. 

He was halfway through Acid Tongue when Geoff appeared, nodding once and urging them both to stand. Gavin tensed and clung to Michael's shirt, who in turn asked Geoff to give them one more minute. 

When they were alone, he stared him straight in the eyes with a hand on either cheek and kissed his nose lightly. 

"Gavin David Free?" 

He nodded lightly, eyes screwed shut.

"Your parents have fucked up worse than should even be physically possible. Hurting you, being anything but perfect to you should be punishable by death. You are absolutely perfect, and I need you to remember that you don't have to look at them, don't have to speak directly to them in there. They can't touch you or force you to do or say anything, and if they even try they'll have to deal with two - scratch that, _six_ angry fists coming at them in a fiery blaze of fury." 

Gavin smiled through his undeniable anxiety. 

"I'm right here." 

"Right here?" 

He tilted their foreheads together, "Right here." 

Geoff came out of the room again, "Sorry guys, we really need you to get in here." 

Gavin let out a long, shaky breath and stood. Hand in hand with Michael, he walked to face his parents.


	6. Godspeed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I was shaking the entire time I wrote this oh my god it was only six chapters long but this was so............. wow. Thank you guys so much for the continual support and everything?? You are all so fantastic. I love you.

The moment you lay eyes on the person you'd like to see least in the world, the person who did something venomous and scarring, the world falls apart around you. Gavin feels his hand slip from Michael's and hears his mother crying through the ringing in his ears. He chokes back a sob and looks helplessly to Geoff and discovers fear behind his eyes. Gavin swallows thickly and, ignoring his father's pleads to speak, walks to the table where Griffon is already seated.

The judge speaks loudly and it cuts through the air slowly and harshly, like a sledge-hammer. He calls the session to order and they begin. 

He blacks out until he feels a hand grip his own and squeeze - Michael, he realizes. He looks to him and sees him nod sideways toward the judge. When he looks at the man in his black robe, his eyes tired and dead but still holding sympathy or skepticism. He can't tell which. 

"Mr.Free?" 

Gavin and his father both reply with a soft yes, a question to answer a question. It makes Gavin's stomach churn and he briefly wonders if the judge would immediately disregard the case and hand custody to Geoff if he saw that the mere sight of his parents had the ability to make him physically sick. 

The judge continues, "Please," He holds up a large hand, "I was speaking to your son." He tells his father. When he turns to look back at Gavin his eyes look like they're boring holes into themselves and there's a headache tapping lightly against his left temple. 

Geoff leans over slightly and whispers into Gavin's ear, "Want me to ask him to call you Gavin?" 

He nods. 

"Your honour?" Geoff's voice is loud and sure, full of promise and care and love and it pulls Gavin away from his father in the greatest way possible. 

It gives him the courage to speak up before Geoff can even begin his request. "Please, call me Gavin." 

The judge nods. "Gavin. While the court will ultimately decide based on the assumed ability of either your parents or the Ramsey family to take care of you, your voice is undeniably important to us." Gavin furrows his brow and nods. "Tell me about your parents." 

His heart speeds up fraction by fraction as he turns his head to face his father, speaking to the judge and watching the reactions flash across the faces of his parents. "They are not my parents." He speaks, his voice raising only an octave. "That man beat me near death on multiple occasions while that woman drank in her bedroom. That man broke my nose when I was seven and that woman made me lie to the hospital workers. That man," His eyes sting. "And that woman," Tears roll down his hot cheeks. "Are monsters." 

His mother breaks down crying and his father yells as the judge pounds his gavel. 

"Mr. and Mrs. Free, I implore you to keep quiet. This is my courtroom." The stern look on his face melts into sadness when he looks at Gavin. "Please tell me about your current situation." 

He laughs lightly in relief and it makes him sniffle. "It's top." He smiles. "These people saved me. I was depressed and reclusive and really bruised up, and they took me in regardless. They make me laugh and stay up on weekends barbequing and swimming with me," He looks to Geoff and Griffon, who grin back with vigor. "They never pushed about the marks or my backstory, they just kept me stable." Michael, who takes his hand and wraps their pinkies up together. "These people are my real family." 

The judge stares at them with a blank expression before turning back to Gavin's parents. 

"Mr. and Mrs. Free, you're fighting for the custody of your son, Gavin Free. We have evidence that you were unfit parents. You were set to complete an 18 month inpatient psychiatric session, but were only able to get through a partial session. Is that correct?" 

Mrs. Free was crying into a handkerchief as her gave a short, affirmative answer.

"You may present your case." 

"Your honour, I admit to what I've done to my son. I admit that I'm not worthy of such an amazing, loving, talented son, but I insist that I'm better. That I would never, ever lay another hand on him." He turns to face his son now, "Gavin, please. I am so sorry for everything I've ever done to you. Even if you don't decide to come home," His voice was cracking and he could see the shine on his cheeks. He'd never seen his father cry that much. "Please know how much I love you. How much we both love you. That I never," He sobs, "Your mother and I never meant to hurt you." 

His mother starts up when he trails off into silent tears and heavy breathing. 

"I've had problems with addiction since a very young age. My mum abandoned us and my dad, well, he wasn't the best influence for staying away from drugs. I never considered that my drinking affected my son, but I-" She bites back on her tongue and her face contorts, "I've never felt guiltier for anything in my entire life. Like I can never fix the damage I've done, never get my son back. Like it should have been me. I-" And with that she breaks off into a full mess, crying as she stares into Gavin's eyes and pleading with her own bloodshot ones. "I love you more than anything in the entire universe. I am so, so sorry." 

Gavin's breathing gets short and fast as he glances around from face to face, mother, father, Michael, Geoff, Griffon, judge and back around again. He gets stuck in a messy loop that doesn't follow a pattern and his head spins as he allows himself to crouch to the floor and grip his hair tightly, fighting convulsions as best he could. 

Like clockwork, Michael is crouching next to him and going through the same process they'd developed over weeks filled with panic attacks just like it. Holding his hand, running the other through his hair, sitting next to him in silence save for a light humming. He doesn't hug him, doesn't get too close or tell him to calm down. He just sits with him and rides it out.

He doesn't know how much time has passed when he gets his breathing slow enough focus on more than Michael's soft curls and his hands around his knees. He lets his head drop forward. 

"How long was it?" Gavin asks.

"About ten minutes, give or take. It's okay, we're on recess."

"Where are they?" 

He knows who he means. "They're in the hall. They tried to talk to Geoff but, well, you can imagine how well that went." 

Gavin laughs shakily, "Good ol' Geoff." 

"Do you want to stand?" 

He thinks for a short second before nodding. Michael holds both his hands as he helps him rise up on shaking legs. Michael places a hand on either side of his head and smiles.

"I'm so proud of you." 

Gavin scoffs, "For what? Having a panic attack because my mum and dad admitted they're rubbish?" 

Michael shakes his head, "For being the strongest, most amazing person I've ever had the pleasure of meeting." 

Gavin's smile is small, but still there. "And dating." 

"Especially dating." The kiss is very short and chaste, but it's just as filling. 

"Can we finish this bullshit up now?" 

"I love it when you cuss." He grins cheekily and walks to the head of the room to speak with the bailiff. 

\--  
"Mr.Free, is there anyone else you'd like to call to the stand?" Gavin doesn't look, but assumes they shook their heads as the judge nods shortly and turns to Geoff. "And you, Mr.Ramsey?" 

"Well," Geoff begins in his regular, lazy voice - his obvious calmness filling him with even more hope. "To be frank, your honour, I don't see much need for us to further our case. But I'm a thorough man, so if it would please the court I would like to call Daniel Gruchy to the stand." 

Gavin whips his head toward Geoff and then around the room until he spots him, starting to stand and wiping down the front of his suit as he makes his way up the aisle. Gavin's eyes are wide and when Dan looks up at him and smiles, he breaks into a run. He goes straight into his arms, crying and half-shouting at him for not telling him he'd be there. He thinks that if the judge weren't pounding his gavel for them to stop, he could hug him for an hour. 

"Go back to your table, B. We'll talk soon as this is finished, yeah?" 

Gavin nods. 

"Now, if there will be no more interruptions. Please make your statement, Mr. Gruchy."

"Right, then. Gavin Free is my best friend in the entire world. We've known each other for years, and he's always been spunky, carefree, fun, hilarious. Completely top. At least, when he wasn't around his parents. I'd only met them once or twice as Gavin kept his home life pretty secret - understandably. I knew something was up with the situation, but couldn't pinpoint it. He wasn't wearing sleeves of bruises when I saw him, not until he got hospitalized." He looks directly to the judge now. "In the short time I've seen him here, interacting with these people; Geoff, Griffon, Michael. He's being himself. I can firmly say that, if it weren't for the presence of his parents, he would feel safer here than he ever could with anyone else." 

It's silent for a few seconds before the judge speaks, "Thank you, Mr.Gruchy. You may take your seat." He looks straight forward and Gavin isn't sure if it's because he can't face him or because he doesn't want his decision to be obvious. "We'll be taking a five minute break now as we contemplate the results. 

Gavin makes a beeline for Dan and jumps in excitement when he gets to him. "B!" 

"Hey, B." He smiles.

"I can't believe you didn't tell me you were coming, you smeggy little.. smeg!" 

"Smeggy little smeg? Aw, you can do better than that, B!" His laugh is contagious. "It was a last minute decision. Michael called me." 

"You're damn right I did." He hears a voice behind him say happily. Michael appears next to them both and smiles at Dan, reaching his hand out for shaking. "It's good to finally meet the famous Daniel Gruchy."

Dan accepts the handshake before looking to Gavin. "Can't believe my little B's got himself a boyfriend."

Gavin rubs the back of his neck and smiles, "Yeah, he's pretty tippy toppers."

"What do you think the ruling will be, Michael?" Dan asks, face suddenly serious.

"Well, after everything that happened I'd be pretty surprised, and fucking pissed, if Gavin didn't win." 

"I'm not the one fighting for custody here!" Gavin says anxiously. 

"Dude, you've got to have realized that this was all up to you the entire time." 

And he was right. 

When the session is called back in, the judge declares full custody to Geoff and Griffon. The room explodes and Gavin is fully aware of the bubbly laughter coming from him as he's picked up by Geoff and swirled in a circle. Michael kisses him deeply when he's set down, Dan hugs him when that's over, Griffon promises him whatever meal he wants for dinner. He's soaring as the judge ends the session and tells everyone to clear out. When they get to the hallway, Geoff and Griffon go to get the car. Michael and Dan are laughing giddily with each other over Gavin Stories when a small voice sounds from behind them.

"Gavin?" He turns to find his parents' tear soaked faces staring up at them. "Sweetie, could we- Can we please talk? Just one last time?"

Michael and Dan both instinctively move in front of him, but he pushes them to the side and steps up to see the faintest glimmer of hope in his mother's eyes. 

"No." 

He turns on his heel and walks in the opposite direction, not looking back. 

\---

Michael and Dan both stay for dinner, naturally. Dan is at a hotel for a few weeks with his parents, but jumps at the offer to have a slumber party with Michael and Gavin. Everyone helps make dinner, even Millie, and it's the most delicious thing Gavin has ever eaten - hands down. They go swimming for hours after, enjoying the Austin weather as the sun sets behind them. They watch a movie as a family. When Millie is asleep and Geoff and Griffon retire to bed, the boys play video games until Gavin deems himself tired (though everyone is sure it's just because he was sucking major dicks at the game they chose.) Dan hugs Gavin, and gives one to Michael for good measure, before heading down the hall to the guest room. 

Gavin pulls Michael by the arm to his bed, stripping off both of their shirts before they collapse together into soft kisses. Michael pulls the blanket over them and hugs him in the dark. 

Gavin Free knew he had suffered in an unstable household, and that he was now in the most perfect place on Earth. He had hid the fact that his father beat him, that his mother was an alcoholic until he met the people who made him feel safe. He had gone from having two friends to having more than he knew what to do with. Any bruises he ever had were due to his own stupid antics, and he was always very happy to tell the -always hilarious- story of how it happened. The subject was not ignored, and it didn't need to be. 

Gavin Free was utterly content.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't believe how long this took me to finish I know I'm the worst oh my god
> 
>  
> 
> ((((and yes they fricked))))


End file.
